Biblical Stewardship refers to the responsibility that Christians have to use and invest the time, gifts, talents, money, and resources that God has given them.
1: the office, duties, and obligations of a steward2: the conducting, supervising, or managing of something especially : the careful and responsible management of something entrusted to one’s care
Biblical Stewardship is the act of being a Steward. It is a job description. But, it is also very specifically how one manages the people, environment, and things that have been entrusted to them. God has given everyone something and someone to manage and steward. It may be small and it may be large.
At the very least Biblical Stewardship means that you are responsible for managing and stewarding yourself and everything to do with your life. You are responsible for managing the health, time, energy, talents, relationships, resources, and money that God has given you. An essential aspect of stewardship portrayed in the Bible is caring for people and establishing order over our corner of the world created by God.
The Bible begins with a story about a garden in Genesis and it ends with a vision of a city in Revelation. A garden does not naturally occur. It requires meticulous cultivation, care, intention, and effort to make an environment beautiful. How much more does it require to build a city? All of that and more. Namely, working together with other people. It requires vision, planning, unity, communication, and conflict resolution among many other things.
According to Websters Dictionary, “When stewardship first appeared in English during the Middle Ages, it functioned as a job description, denoting the office of a steward, or manager of a large household. Over the centuries, its range of reference spread to the oversight of law courts, employee unions…and many other organizations. In recent years, the long-established “management” sense of stewardship has evolved a positive meaning, “careful and responsible management.” This sense is commonly found nowadays in contexts such as “stewardship of the environment, the family business,” etc. It also occasionally appears as an adjective in phrases such as “stewardship fundraising” (that is, fundraising aimed at building good relationships with donors in order to keep them loyal).”
When I think of Biblical Stewardship one phrase comes to mind, “to whom much is given, much will be required” (Luke 12:47 If you have heard this wisdom, you know it means God will hold us responsible for what we do with what we have. Whatever talents, wealth, knowledge, time, and resources you have been blessed with you are expected to benefit others and multiply and increase these.
Luke 12:47-48
“And a servant who knows what the master wants, but isn’t prepared and doesn’t carry out those instructions, will be severely punished. But someone who does not know, and then does something wrong, will be punished only lightly. When someone has been given much, much will be required in return; and when someone has been entrusted with much, even more will be required.
We must live with intention so that we maximize the resources that we have been given.
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